“Gold Coast”/Photo: Rashayla Marie Brown
Part of the 2020 Best of Chicago edition.
Best Guide to Black-Owned Restaurants
Toure Muhammad, Black Chicago Eats
In the aftermath of the George Floyd protests, a desire to support Black-owned businesses and restaurants swelled up. A great place to start: Toure Muhammad’s comprehensive blackchicagoeats.com. “Black Chicago Eats celebrates Black people’s contribution to Chicago’s world-class culinary arts scene,” says Muhammad. “We put a spotlight on the eateries and the owners to help Chicagoans and visitors discover popular and new places to eat out.” Despite the challenges for restaurants everywhere, Muhammad thinks there’s more than one way forward. “I see restaurants continuing to provide excellent takeout and delivery services. I also believe that more restaurants see the importance of digital marketing and will increase their efforts to tell their story online.” (Michael Workman)
Best—and Prettiest—Cakes
Luxury Cake Company
The cakes from Laura Mitchell’s Luxury Cake Company are elaborate. A three-layer cake of UNO cards, a vanilla cake that looks like a bottle of Veuve on ice, endless perfect sugar flowers and on and on. Mitchell’s cakes are in high demand, and she’s the preferred wedding cake vendor for One North Kitchen & Bar. She makes both classic and custom cakes, as well as cupcakes, custom cookies, donuts and other desserts. Scrolling through the Luxury Cake Company Instagram feed is enough to make anyone hungry, even if the cakes look almost too good to eat. (Rebecca Holland)
2150 S. Canalport
Best Place to Have Anything And Everything Jerked
The Jerk Taco Man
Julius Thomas boasts on his in-store signage that he will jerk whatever you got: “You bring it, I’ll jerk it.” For a hundred dollars, he offers that he will even jerk “an old car tire,” although we prefer the jerk crab legs. Get in line early; this is a popular place with no indoor or outdoor seating. Be prepared to take your delicious jerked food home, if not traveling from the West Side, or eat al trunko. (David Hammond)
4001 W. Jackson
Best Comfort Food
Brian Jupiter, Ina Mae and Frontier
He’s the man behind the deliciousness that is Frontier in West Town (think game, seafood and other delicacies) and the exceptional NOLA flavors at Ina Mae Tavern & Packaged Goods, both culinary masterpieces inspired by down home. Originally from New Orleans, he would learn closely held family secrets and recipes, spending his childhood alongside his grandmother in her kitchen. He opened his first two restaurants adding a generous dose of Gulf goodness to the city’s ever-changing restaurant scene. After putting his stakes into two of Chicago’s predominantly white neighborhoods, his vision is to keep expanding, opening more locations citywide and doing what he does best. Executive chef Brian Jupiter believes that Southern comfort food is a true art form. And he’s making sure that we do, too. (Vasia Rigou)
Best Place to Fall In Love With Ice Cream Again
Shawn Michelle’s Homemade Ice Cream
Ice cream is cake’s perfect match. Shawn Michelle’s supreme, award-winning Homemade Ice Cream goes above and beyond to elevate the perception of the world-famous dessert. The level of innovation and attention to detail in his product makes it feel like your first experience ever with ice cream! (Stephanie Hart, owner, Brown Sugar Bakery)
Best Popcorn
Let’s Get Poppin’, Inc. Gourmet Popcorn and Pastries
Chicago has a style for everything: caramel and cheese popcorn mixed together is known as Chicago-style popcorn. For twenty-five years, south Western Avenue has been the home of Let’s Get Poppin’ Gourmet Popcorn and Pastries. Barbara and James Marsh have a passion for popcorn, Betty Boop and making people happy. The longtime staff of joyful women will tell you they have a ninety-five percent success rate, and they pray for the other five percent. With fourteen flavors, popped and prepared fresh daily, you could miss the eight varieties of homemade cakes, the brownies, candy or cookies, but you will find that they are the absolute best. (LD Barnes)
11758 S. Western
Best Cold Brew Coffee
Kyoto Black
Justin Doggett, founder of Kyoto Black, has spent years perfecting his Kyoto-style cold brew, a smooth, bold coffee that’s naturally sweet and barely acidic. With so many working from home, business has exploded, so much so that Doggett moved from a shared kitchen to his own space on Devon Avenue. Kyoto Black is available in-store, for delivery and at some Chicago restaurants. (Rebecca Holland)
1445 W. Devon
Best Bite of Social Impact in a Pie
Justice of the Pies
Having a taste of chef Maya-Camille Broussard’s Chili Roasted Sweet Potato and Goat Cheese quiche is a slice of heaven, honoring her family’s culture and traditions. She founded Justice of the Pies in memory of her late father, a criminal defense attorney who believed that “everyone deserves an opportunity to reform their lives” as well as to celebrate his passion for pies. Broussard balances her business model between social equity and entrepreneurial projects. Youth workshops and food donations support her team and community. Her artisanal cooking classes have responded to the pandemic with virtual presentations. The company recently provided Carrot Soufflé Pies for a James Beard Foundation event. To have one of her delicious sweet and savory pies, quiches or tarts delivered, contact Broussard directly or pre-order for their Thanksgiving curbside pop-up, November 25, at the Hatchery. (Yetta Starr)
Best Way to Drink, Remotely
1340 Beer Wine Spirits
Sommelier Derrick Westbrook, who has landed spots on Wine Enthusiast magazine’s “40 Under 40 Tastemakers” list for his work at Elizabeth and 57th Street Vines, is co-owner of 1340 Beer Wine Spirits. From that base, he runs Zoom wine classes and curates a wine club that “reflects the overall values of 1340, featuring wines that are sustainably produced with an emphasis on BIPOC, female and LGBTQIA+ winemakers and winery owners.” (Rebecca Holland)
1340 W. Madison
Best Seafood Crab Boil Restaurant
Two Fish Crab Shack
It’s the bag. Okay, it’s what’s inside the bag: the seafood boil, the heat quotient, the sauces and the perfect balanced seasonings. Want some sides like corn, red potatoes or delicious chicken Andouille sausage? No problem—it all goes in the bag. It’s an in-the-moment marinating melange. Located in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood of Bronzeville, Two Fish offers six seafood selections and five seasoning choices. It’s a no-frills bib-and-hands-only affair in a casual welcoming atmosphere perfect for unwinding and fixing a jerk and Cajun flavor craving. (Yetta Starr)
641 E. 47th
Best Place to Have Liver & Onions in Hillside
Priscilla’s Ultimate Soulfood Cafeteria
Priscilla’s Ultimate Soulfood Cafeteria lays out all the soul favorites. For those of us who live in the western suburbs and who lived during the Eisenhower years, when beef liver was common on family tables, this is the place to go for everyone’s favorite organ meat, appropriately served under a generous mound of fried onions. (David Hammond)
4330 W. Roosevelt
Best Bar We Hope Survives And Will Miss If It Doesn’t
Some Like It Black Creative Arts Bar
The bar and arts venue Some Like It Black has been a Chicago hub for Black culture for twenty years. But it could close its doors for good. “Our space is already small, so with capacity restrictions, it’s hard to stay afloat,” says Kelli Rich, who four years ago moved Some Like it Black to its location in Kenwood. If the bar does close, with it will go the only stage for local artists to perform poetry, jazz and other arts in the Kenwood-Bronzeville area. “We’re a staple in the community,” Rich says. “There are not that many African American-owned businesses in Bronzeville that are like Some Like It Black.” (Rebecca Holland)
810 E. 43rd
Best Triple Threat
Christopher LeMark, Founder of Coffee, Hip-Hop & Mental Health
What would happen if we normalized therapy? This is a question that Christopher LeMark, founder of Coffee, Hip-Hop & Mental Health hopes to answer through its initiatives to tackle systemic racism, poverty and social injustice. Through food drives and pop-ups, LeMark is on a path to feed 10,000-plus people in the city of Chicago who have food insecurity. (Kia Smith)
Best Definition of the “Black Chicago Experience”
Pier 31
There is nothing like summertime in Chicago and nothing like summer on the Lake. Hanging out on the Lake on the South Side was the inspiration that Will Smith used to write “Summertime.” With a view of the skyline, Pier 31 is a brisk walk from the sand of 31st Street Beach and has become the summer go-to spot since opening in 2012. Come for the food and cocktails, stay for live music or DJ sets and the Lakefront breeze, return for the experience that is everything Black Chicago is about. (Chris Cason)
3101 S. Lake Shore
Best Wine Shop That Doesn’t Take Itself Too Seriously
Love Cork Screw
Like many Chicago business successes, Chrishon Lampley, negociant and founder of the Love Cork Screw wine label, is all about pivoting. “With the looting in Chicago, we lost eighty percent of our accounts, and even Binny’s shut down for a while,” Lampley says. “But when people started proclaiming themselves allies, sales skyrocketed. From loss, great awareness came about.” Out of about 111,000 negociants in the world, only sixty are African American women. “Being in this small percentage has been and will continue to be challenging,” Lampley says. She hopes to keep educating people about wine, getting rid of the stigma that wine is complicated or elite, supporting small wineries and getting drinkers interested in Midwest varietals. (Rebecca Holland)
Best “On the James Beard-Michelin Star Watch List” Restaurant
Eleven Eleven
Restaurateur Ahmed Braimah turned the space previously occupied by Honey’s, where he served as general manager, into a mix of casual lounge and upscale dining. If seclusion is what you’re looking for, there are private dining rooms and an upstairs, enclosed patio that’s eye-level with the El. The menu of inspirational modern American cuisine, specialty cocktails from the creative mind of general manager Justin Frierson and select vino, are for any enthusiast or sommelier in search of something different. (Chris Cason)
1111 W. Lake
Best Ethiopian Food in the Midwest
Demera
Since opening in 2007, Demera has become a Chicago institution. It’s widely thought of as one of the best Ethiopian restaurants in Chicago, if not the Midwest and recommended by Michelin Guide. Over the past thirteen years, owner Tigist Reda, who grew up cooking with the women in her family in Ethiopia, has introduced countless Chicagoans to the flavors of her native country, as well as its traditions. (Rebecca Holland)
4801 N. Broadway
Best Food Justice Organization
Urban Growers Collective
The organization co-founded by Laurel Sims and Erika Allen (daughter of legendary Will Allen, founder of Milwaukee-based Growing Power) grows more than just food. There are youth education programs, adult job training for Black and Latino men affected by gun violence, in partnership with Heartland Alliance, and farmer incubation programs cultivate skills, community and economic independence for residents in the city’s most vulnerable neighborhoods. Eight farms, located primarily on the South Side, serve as nexuses for urban agriculture workshops and programs. Four buses, converted into mobile produce markets, bring fresh food directly into neighborhoods that have few, if any full-service grocery stores. Since its founding three years ago, Urban Growers Collective has demonstrated the power of local food production to heal body, soul and community. (Sharon Hoyer)
Best Winning During COVID
Chef Lamar Moore
Chicago chef Lamar Moore, formerly of Currency Exchange Café, saw the opening of his Vegas steakhouse—Bugsy & Meyer’s—delayed by the pandemic, but he still won “Vegas Chef Prizefight.” And although he’s spending a lot of time in Nevada now that his steakhouse has finally opened, he admits, “My heart and my roots are deeply embedded in the city of Chicago.” He’s also heading Instagram webinars where Chicagoans can stay connected to him and his food. (David Hammond)
Best Reason to Wait in Line for Brunch
Sweet Maple Café
Sure, people wait in line for brunch all over the city, but Sweet Maple Café has drawn crowds since before many of those brunchers were born. Everything at this neighborhood institution is phenomenal, but special attention must be paid to their home fries, golden-brown, full of strings of blackened, caramelized onions and served in portions that should be illegal. (Leigh Kunkel)
1339 W. Taylor
Best Chef to Leave Chicago in 2020
Mariya Russell
Mariya Russell of Kumiko/Kikko, after getting major press in the past year, and being the first Black woman to receive a Michelin star, was Newcity’s 2020 Big Heat cover subject. She told us then, “Now I can be an example for other young Black women to follow their dream.” She seemed en route to Chicago celebrity chef stardom, then made a critical life choice to leave Chicago and head to Hawaii, citing understandable exhaustion and a need to recharge. We miss her. (David Hammond)
Best Street Food Surprisingly Introduced by African Americans
The Chicago Tamale
Unlike the Mexican tamale, which is surrounded by masa and packed in a corn husk, the Chicago tamale is more like a large yellow cigar. Further modified by Greek and other immigrants with food carts, these delicacies are sold throughout the city at hot dog stands. Street history indicates, though, that the Chicago tamale was inspired by African American migrants from the Southwest. Impressed by the portable snack eaten by Mexican immigrants who worked beside them, they made their own version using corn meal mush, spices and ground meat. African Americans who arrived in Chicago sold them on the South Side. Songs like Herbert Ingraham’s “Hot Tamale Man!” (1909) and Fred Rose’s “Here Comes the Hot Tamale Man” (1926) support these claims. Perhaps the best musical evidence of its origin comes from Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who penned “Hot Tamales, They’re Red Hot, Yes She’s Got Them For Sale.” The line comes from his song “They’re Red Hot” recorded in 1938, about the same time he wrote “Sweet Home Chicago.” (David Witter)
Best Chef to Serve You Along the Banks of the Mighty Chicago
Cedric Harden
River Roast offers one of the city’s best views up-and-down the Chicago River, and many of those panoramic vistas can be enjoyed without even wasting a glance at Trump Tower. Offering tasty dishes to nibble while the river goes by, Cedric Harden, executive chef at River Roast, turns out warming roast chicken, fish and vegetables. Chicago Gourmet’s site identifies Harden as “the leading force behind the culinary program at River Roast.” That force will be with you as you contemplate the rolling Chicago. (David Hammond)
315 N. LaSalle
Best Way to Drink Coffee… Not Black But Black-Owned
Chicago French Press
Snickerdoodle, Orange Creme, Lemon Brûlée, Piña Colada…. No, they’re not ice cream flavors. A cup of coffee is a daily necessity, but by the time you mix sweeteners and cream for that perfect taste, you might have sugar overload. Kris Christian, founder of the Chicago French Press, is making sure you don’t compromise your health for a flavorful cup of coffee. Each bag is filled with organic coffee, blended with dried fruits, chocolate or nuts. As a successful young black woman, Christian also values empowering her community by donating ten percent of proceeds to local and national charities and nonprofits. (Sania Blu)
Chicagofrenchpress.com
The Best Man to Tell You What Wine to Drink
Brian Duncan
Brian Duncan, one of the founders of Bin 36, Chicago’s legendary, now shuttered wine bar, was named Gourmet Wine Cellar Wine Director of the Year; Duncan has also been honored with four James Beard nominations. He’s heading Down to Earth Concepts, which specializes in interactive wine and food seminars as well as corporate team-building. (David Hammond)
Best Donuts
Old Fashioned Donuts
The storefront is, as the name implies, old-fashioned, at 112th and Michigan. The donuts are a bite of the past, without preservatives. They are the freshest you can get. You can watch Buritt Bullock and his donut machine that hails from the late 1940s in the front window. Whether you arrive at the 6am opening or slide in in the afternoon before closing, the pastries are only hours, often minutes, old. Be flexible, though. They may sell out of your favorite, but all are delightful. Binge on a giant donut, a rite of passage for generations in the Roseland and Pullman neighborhoods. (LD Barnes)
11248 S. Michigan
Part of the 2020 Best of Chicago edition: read the full feature here, or get a copy in print here.
